What are best cities for digital nomads in Central and Eastern Europe?
With its diversity in cultures, landscape and affordability, Europe is becoming more and more popular among digital nomads. This is especially true when it comes to Southeast Europe, which has been making a name for itself only in the past few years.
We’ve put together a list of the best cities for digital nomads in Central and Eastern Europe to help you choose your next destination to work remotely from. May it be sandy beaches, high mountains, castles or historic old towns – here you’ll find whatever you’re looking for and more.
Best cities for digital nomads in Croatia
Split
One of the most popular cities among digital nomads in Croatia is Split. Here you’ll find an abundance of coworking spaces and laptop-friendly cafes to get work done, but also meet some like-minded people.
Some of the coworking spaces in Split include The Works, scaleup Office and Smartspace.
The town is located along the Dalmatian coast and offers a variety of things to do when one’s not focused on their daily tasks – from exploring the beautiful old town and its Roman buildings, to enjoying the promenade and the nearby historic sights.
Zadar
To say that Zadar is an interesting destination for digital nomads is an understatement. The city is home to the first digital nomad village in Croatia, called the Digital Nomad Valley Zadar, but it’s also still considered a bit more off-the-beaten-path, making it perfect for those looking to escape the tourist crowds.
Zadar is situated on the Northern part of the Dalmatian coast, still allowing you to enjoy the Adriatic Sea and its sandy beaches when the weather gets hot.
Ancient ruins from the Romans and Venetians can be found scattered around the beautiful old town, and the towering mountains make for a mesmerizing backdrop when working from here.
Some of the coworking spaces in Zadar include COIN Zadar and the free Code Hub, which is financed by the European Union.
Rovinj
The city of Rovinj is cited among the best cities for digital nomads in Croatia. The atmosphere is heavily influenced by the different empires that ruled here – the Venetians, the Romans, the Byzantines and the Austrians all resided here at some point in time.
The city still hasn’t turned into a massive tourist magnet like Dubrovnik, making it even better for a place to work from and enjoy the tranquility of nature. Rovinj is located on the Istrian peninsula, giving you the opportunity to be as close to the sea as it can get.
The only coworking space in the city is Coworking Rovinj-Rovigno, located just outside the city center. There are also a fair amount of laptop-friendly cafes where you can get some work done.
Best cities for digital nomads in Greece
Athens
The Greek capital is one of the most popular cities among digital nomads in the country. Athens has a rich history and culture, the internet is very fast, and it’s much more affordable than most European cities (let alone capitals).
Greece is known for its long summer and many summer days – perfect for anyone who wants to enjoy the warm rays a little longer than usual.
Some of the best shared places to work from in Athens include Impact Hub, Selina Theatrou (nomadic hostelry combined with a coworking space), Spaces Ermou (premium coworking space), and Tzaferi 16.
Thessaloniki
Being a university city, Thessaloniki is a cultural melting pot where anyone can feel at home. It was also named among the top party destinations in the world by Lonely Planet at some point! Another enticing factor is its proximity to nature – both beaches and mountains are very accessible from Thessaloniki. One of the best destinations nearby is the Halkidiki peninsula in the south.
It’s good to keep in mind that despite Thessaloniki being on the coast, it’s rather a port city than a beach city – if you want to enjoy a day at the beach, you might have to go a bit further than the city center.
Well, at least Thessaloniki isn’t lacking in coworking spaces. The big names here are Coho – The coworking home, i4G PRO and Office Club.
Crete
The island of Crete has one of the biggest digital nomad communities in all of Greece, making it the perfect place for anyone looking to relocate to the country. It even has its own website dedicated to anything remote work-related.
This is the biggest and southernmost Greek island and it’s often considered among the most authentic and representative islands in the country. Here you’ll also find otherworldly beaches and historic sights to spend your free time exploring.
There’s also a good variety of coworking spaces, among which Office12 Coworking, Comeet Creative Space, Workhub Chania and Officenter.
Best cities for digital nomads in Bulgaria
Bansko
When talking about the best cities in Bulgaria for digital nomads, the name you’d hear the most often is undoubtedly Bansko. This small mountain town has been turned into a hub for people from all over the world, and many of them have even decided to buy an apartment here.
There are a few coworking spaces in Bansko, but the biggest and most popular one is Coliving and Coworking Bansko. They also organize the annual Bansko Digital Nomads Fest, which in 2022 brought together over 500 people from around the world.
Bansko is not only a digital nomads haven, but also paradise for nature and sports lovers. In winter, this is the most popular ski resort in all of Bulgaria, and in summer its proximity to the mountains allows for hikes, mountain biking and more exciting activities. Not to mention that the old town is beautiful and one can spend a day just exploring it.
Sofia
The next most preferred Bulgarian city among digital nomads is the capital – Sofia. This place is Bulgaria’s cultural hub – it has over 20 museums to visit and quite a few historic sights, such as the Roman ruins at Serdika metro station, St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the St. George Church and more.
What makes it even better is its proximity to the Vitosha mountains, allowing for hiking during the summer and winter sports during the colder months.
Sofia is full of coworking spaces, some of which include Betahaus, SOHO – Sofia Holistic Coworking Company, Puzl CowOrKing, Work & Share Coworking Space, Regus and more. As of 2022, Work Nomads has also opened its doors, allowing people to not only work from there, but also rent full apartments for short and long stays.
Varna
Varna is the third biggest city in Bulgaria and the biggest one on the seaside. If you’re looking to relocate somewhere close to the Black Sea in Bulgaria, this is your best bet. Sandy beaches, beautiful architecture and a lot of history – this is what Varna is all about.
With low-fare airlines being introduced to the city, Varna is easily reachable from numerous places around Europe. Costs here are definitely cheaper than Sofia, and you also get the proximity to the seaside as an added bonus.
Finding a coworking space in Varna to work from is easy. Some of them include Innovator, Beehive and Switch CoWorking Space.
Best cities for digital nomads in Romania
Timișoara
Timișoara is Romania’s third largest city and one of the most popular ones among digital nomads. This city is often called the “Little Vienna” because of its elegant buildings, Secessionist architecture and history. It doesn’t lack charm, so to speak.
The city is buzzing with young people, making it a great place for anyone looking for a lively place to live at. It has the best of both worlds – the conveniences of a large city but also the peacefulness of a smaller town.
Some of the coworking spaces here are Cowork Timisoara – Cowork Timișoara, DevPlant Cowork, Workify and FOR Co-working and Makerspace.
Cluj-Napoca
Located in the heart of Transylvania, this Romanian city is becoming more and more popular among remote workers. Cluj has been booming in recent years, currently holding even higher rental prices than the capital. The city has a big concentration of tech startups and IT companies, and it carries a very youthful and dynamic vibe.
Cluj is not only great to explore and work from, but also as a starting point for different day trips – there’s a lot to see in Transylvania, such as the Corvin Castle, the Alba Carolina Fortress, the Turda Salt Mine and more.
Among the best coworking spaces in Cluj are Impact Hub, ClujHub and Cluj Cowork.
Bucharest
The Romanian capital undoubtedly has a large concentration of digital nomads and this comes as no surprise. This is the biggest city in the country, has a rich history and the architecture is beautiful. The IT sector has been developing very fast in recent years, and more and more startups have been emerging as well.
This is also among the most affordable European capitals, perfect for those who want to stay on a budget. Dracula’s castle is only a couple hours away, and the Black Sea Coast can be reached within 2.5 hours by car.
Bucharest is literally buzzing with coworking spaces. Some of them include Commons Unirii, TheAtelier.ro and Impact Hub Bucharest Universitate.
Brasov
Brasov is a wonderful all-year-round destination if you’re looking for somewhere to settle down at any point during the year. You enjoy skiing? The Carpathian mountains are right here and the ski resort of Poiana Brasov is only 15 minutes away. Hiking is your thing? There are plenty of opportunities. Around Brasov there are quite a few interesting places to visit like Rasnov Citadel and Bran Castle.
The city is a bit isolated and not very well connected to the Romanian highways, but the Brasov Airport is planned to start working at the end of 2022.
Brasov also has around 10 coworking spaces to choose from, and some of the best ones are Kool Werk and Hubba Hubba.
Best cities for digital nomads in Montenegro
Podgorica
Being the capital of Montenegro, Podgorica is often the first choice of digital nomads in the country. As every big city, here you can find anything you’re looking for with the added bonus of affordability. Some people even compare Montenegro to Thailand in terms of accessibility and budgeting.
Most of the country’s coworking spaces are concentrated here, among which you’ll find NEST COWORKING, Work Hub Montenegro and Mtel Digitalna Fabrika.
Kotor
Kotor may be tiny, but it’s also stunningly beautiful. If all you need is some gorgeous views, hiking opportunities and a lovely town to walk around, you’ll find this here. However, Kotor may not be the right choice if you’re looking for more city-like amenities, such as gyms, malls, cafes etc.
Budva
Not too far from Kotor there’s another small town, perfect for digital nomads that want to escape the crowds. Well, except for the summer months when it’s the high season in Montenegro and these towns are crammed with tourists.
Budva is the perfect place to relax and enjoy nature, to get some work done, but also to explore the rest of Montenegro, thanks to its central location. There’s one coworking space in Budva called HUBrela that you can check out.
Best cities for digital nomads in Serbia
Belgrade
Belgrade’s popularity among digital nomads is rising day by day. The Serbian capital is usually known for being a party destination, but in recent years it’s turning into a favorable place for work as well.
The city is quite big and has everything you might need. It’s also not too crowded, leaving some space to breathe and get work done without dealing with any crowds of people.
The coworking spaces aren’t lacking either. Some of the most highly-rated ones include the Smart Office Coworking Belgrade, Coworking Beograd Work Space One and Startit Beograd.
The Digital Serbia Initiative, together with the United Nations Development Program, launched a new website, called “BelgradeGets.digital”, aimed at helping digital nomads to navigate around the city and make the most of their stay.
Novi Sad
If the hustle and bustle isn’t your thing, don’t look away as Serbia still has something to offer. A big part of the digital nomads who decided not to reside in Belgrade have found Novi Sad to be a wonderful place to call home.
Novi Sad was named a European Capital of Culture and it you can be sure you’ll stayed entertained here. May it be strolls along the Danube, trekking at the Fruška Gora National Park, or diving into the city’s history at the Petrovaradin Fortress – there’s definitely something for everyone.
If this hasn’t convinced you yet, let’s talk about music. The EXIT Festival, which takes place in the Petrovaradin Fortress every year in July, is the one event that travelers usually associate Novi Sad with. In 2016 it was named the best summer music festival in Europe, so there must be something about it.
If you’re looking for a place to work from in Novi Sad, some of the cowering spaces include Startit, Business Incubator and Habitat.
Best cities for digital nomads in North Macedonia
Skopje
The North Macedonian capital is an “up and coming” digital nomads destination, making it perfect for anyone who still wants to find something off-the-beaten-path. The good news is that it’s among the cheapest capitals in Europe, so staying on a budget is not hard.
At the end of January 2021 the Government of North Macedonia announced that it is to launch a new visa program aimed at attracting global digital nomads. Currently, tourists can only stay in North Macedonia for up to 3 months, making it impossible for remote workers to move there for longer. With the new legislation that is currently being discussed, the entrepreneurial community hopes to introduce the new visa, valid for a period of 1 year, that will likely come with a possibility for extension.
If you’d like to stay in Skopje even for just a couple of months, here are some of the more popular coworking spaces: Coffice Coworking Space and Highspace.
Best cities for digital nomads in Albania
Tirana
The Albanian capital is definitely on the way to securing a name for itself as a digital nomad city. In September 2022 the city held its first ever Tirana Digital Nomad Festival, making a statement that it’s on the path to becoming one of the leading digital nomad events in Southeast Europe.
Tirana is located in the center of the country and is surrounded by mountains, making it a perfect base for hiking and nature lovers. It’s still considered an affordable destination and is yet to be discovered by most travellers. If you want to go somewhere off-the-beaten-path – definitely consider Albania.
The working environment is favourable as well – fast wi-fi, laptop-friendly cafes and quite a few coworking spaces. What more could you ask for!? Some of the best coworking spaces include Coolab, Hot Spot Tirana, Dutch Hub and Innospace.
Durrës
Durrës offers the perfect mixture of city life and beach life, but also historic sights and a lovely central park to walk around. You can be working from one of the trendy cafes in the morning and go for a dip in the Adriatic sea in the afternoon – that’s the beauty of this coastal town.
There are still no coworking spaces in Durrës, but the cafe scene is relatively rich and work-friendly. Besides, the city is quite affordable so renting an apartment with an office room is a good option as well.
Best cities for digital nomads in Poland
Krakow
One of Poland’s most visited cities is also a much preferred destination among digital nomads. Krakow is quite popular among tourists, which can mostly be felt during summertime, but it still has so much to offer that one should definitely consider making it a home base.
Krakow is a historic city, filled with beautiful buildings and interesting monuments that you couldn’t get tired of exploring. It’s also a student city with a buzzing nightlife and good booze.
You can choose from the city’s many roastery cafes to enjoy a cup of coffee and concentrate on your work. In terms of coworking spaces, there’s a lot to pick from. Some of the most highly rated ones are CLUSTER COWORK Józefitów, hub:raum Kraków and COWORKING Kraków BIóRO.
Warsaw
The Polish capital is a well-established innovation hub with many startups and creative agencies. The vibe here is slightly different from the one in Krakow – as the city was destroyed during World War II, it had to be rebuilt which led to its more modern look today. The whole Old Town was also rebuilt, and even though the colorful buildings may seem quite old – they’re not.
Digital nomads often choose Warsaw because of the abundance of things it offers – nice hipster areas to hang out, elegant parks, good restaurants and bars, and last but not least – some of the top coworking spaces in the country. These include Coworking Warszawa Praga, BIURCO, Mindspace Koszyki and Business Lab Nowy Świat.
Gdansk
Gdansk is still relatively new to the digital nomad scene as it’s in the process of gaining popularity among remote workers. This might be both a positive and a negative – you get to explore a city, not yet flooded by digital nomads, and get to fully emerge in the local culture, but it might also feel lonely from time to time, not being able to share the experience with many people.
The city is one of the few places in Poland with access to the sea (which is recommended to be enjoyed only in summer), making it a good destination during the summer heat. As its still an emerging nomads hub, the coworking spaces are relatively limited – you can check out O4 Coworking, GOOD SPACE coworking and Chillispaces Gdańsk – Argon.
Wroclaw
Wroclaw is the fourth largest city in Poland and another upcoming digital nomads destination. There’s more and more going on in Wroclaw in terms of innovation and the startup scene, such as the Wolves Summit conference.
In our humble opinion, Wroclaw is a hidden gem that deserves more attention than it gets – the city is strikingly beautiful and carries a charisma that can be felt as soon as you set foot there. There’s a lot to be explored, such as the many bridges, numerous historic buildings, local restaurants and bars, and more. Some of the coworking spaces here include IDEA PLACE and OfficeForYou.pl.
Best cities for digital nomads in Slovenia
Ljubljana
Ljubljana surprises many people with its charm and atmosphere, which luckily still hasn’t been overshadowed by masses of tourism. The Slovenian capital is welcoming, filled with life, and it’s one of the greenest cities in Europe. In fact, it was named The Green Capital of Europe in 2016.
Being a small country in Central Europe, Slovenia is a perfect starting point for anyone who wants to explore the nearby countries. You could easily get to Austria, Hungary, Italy, but also the Balkan countries in the East, like Romania, Serbia and Bulgaria.
Ljubljana is an up-and-coming destination for digital nomads and it’s highly recommended to explore it before it becomes too popular. Some of the places to work from in the city are ABC HUB LJUBLJANA, MP hub. Coworking and Coworking S HUB.
Bled
We have all come across photos of the beautiful lake Bled on social media at some point. This place has striked the interest of thousands of people to come and visit, but imagine waking up and going for a walk around the lake every morning?
Bled is not only a tourist destination but also an emerging base for digital nomads. While there are still no coworking spaces in this small town, there’s quite a few laptop-friendly cafes. Well, I wouldn’t mind working from an apartment with a view over the lake either – who needs a coworking space when you have a beautiful lake as your backyard?
Best cities for digital nomads in Hungary
Budapest
The Hungarian capital is an attractive destination for many digital nomads – it’s right in the heart of Europe, it’s affordable and it’s a beautiful place to live in. The city is becoming more and more multicultural and thanks to its impressive historic monuments, it has gained large popularity in recent years as well.
Budapest has a fair share of coworking spaces to do your work from during the day, numerous trendy bars to party at night, and the extravagant Szechenyi thermal baths to relax during the weekends.
Some of the best coworking spaces in Budapest include KAPTÁR coworking, Loffice, Kubik Coworking Budapest and Muse Közösségi Iroda. If you prefer working from cafes, you’ll find plenty of these here as well.
Szeged
Szeged is yet another underappreciated gem in the heart of Europe that deserves much more attention than it actually gets. The city is marked by the beautiful art nouveau style of architecture, large squares and remarkable churches.
To add to this, Szeged is also often referred to as the “City of Sunshine” due to its wonderful weather. Numerous festivals take place in the city throughout the year, making the place bustling with life.
Szeged is also a very digital nomads-friendly city. You can find many cafes to work from around town, as well as some coworking spaces – Door Coworking Office and Jungle coworking office Szeged, to name a few.
Debrecen
Debrecen may be the second largest city in Hungary, but it’s actually much smaller than Budapest. You can’t expect to be entertained by the same amount of sights and things going on, but Debrecen is still a very beautiful place with a large student population, and definitely much more affordable than the capital.
There are some meeting spaces one could book here, but the coworking spaces are scarce. We recommend checking out Debrecen HUB and Xponential Coworking Office, but also look around for some cute cafes, which you should be easily able to find.
Best cities for digital nomads in the Czech Republic
Prague
Prague has been developing into a great hub for digital nomads – its affordability, central location and good quality of life are just some of the reasons that attract remote workers to the Czech capital.
The city is one of the most popular places among travellers in Europe, so you can expect it to be a busy place pretty much all-year-round. Along with its beautiful architecture and remarkable sights, Prague offers some alternative attractions as well, such as a beer spa, for example. You’ll never get bored here is what we’re trying to say.
Unlike other European capitals, Prague is still relatively affordable, making it a great place to live in as a digital nomad. You can also choose from the many coworking spaces, such as WorkLounge Diamant, HubHub, WeWork and Locus Workspace.
Brno
Being the second biggest city in the Czech Republic, Brno is often overlooked and put in the shadow of Prague, though undeservingly. This city will surprise you with its atmosphere, good variety of bars and restaurants, historic sights and monuments.
The city is very compact and everything is easily reachable on foot or by tram. There’s also so many things to see nearby – from spending time in nature and walking around castles, to sipping on some Czech wine in the local vineyards.
Brno is proud to have the biggest Impact hub in Europe which is probably the best coworking space in the city. Others include the COWO BRNO and the Brain Farm Brno.
F.A.Q.
What is a digital nomad?
Digital nomad is a person who only needs a laptop and good internet connection to work. This gives them the freedom to live and work from anywhere around the world, often moving places once every few months. Digital nomads often work from coffee shops, coworking spaces or any other location that’s convenient and has reliable internet.
What is a digital nomad visa?
Many countries are starting to introduce digital nomad visas, specifically targeting remote workers. A digital nomad visa legally allows visitors to work remotely in and for a foreign country for an extended period of time.
Which countries in Central and Eastern Europe offer digital nomad visa
Examples of such European countries that offer a digital nomad visa are Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Romania and the Czech Republic.
What is your favourite digital nomads city? Share with us in the comments below!
